


Nice to Meet You

by artlessICTOAN, Spellfire01



Series: Learning to Love - A Naruto Gem AU [2]
Category: Naruto, Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Backstory to ATFC, Crush at First Sight, First Meetings, Gen, Iruka is only a little amused, Kakashi and Gai are the Biggest Dorks in the universe, Nart and Sak are just the Best friends ever tbh, Oneshot Series, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sakura is all kinds of badass, eternal rivals
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-07
Updated: 2017-06-17
Packaged: 2018-08-20 01:37:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8231618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artlessICTOAN/pseuds/artlessICTOAN, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spellfire01/pseuds/Spellfire01
Summary: There was absolutely no doubt about it, they thought, she was the most amazing Gem they’d ever seen.A series of oneshots related to our fic A Time for Change, showing how various characters first meet in the Naruto Gem AU





	1. Citrine and Rhodochrosite

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, so it turns out that today is the two-month anniversary of the very first chap of [ATFC](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7703959/chapters/17554360) going up! ~~and I absolutely did _not_ need to be reminded of that fact by Spell shut up~~ So to celebrate, here’s a short ‘n sweet oneshot of Citrine/Naruto and Rhodochrosite/Sakura’s first meeting in the Gem AU! Honestly I think these two being buds is kinda my favourite thing to write ever and lord knows I’ll take any excuse to show Sak being a complete badass. We’ll probably keep this open as a oneshot/drabble series of various characters' first meetings in this AU, though we’ll only be updating as and when we get the inspiration, if there’s something you’d really love to see though then we can maybe push that to the top of our list!  
>  Last thing, I just wanna give a huge thanks to everyone who’s been following the fic and I hope you’ll stay for however long this thing goes on for (and with the ideas me and Spell have it’ll be going for a long while yet)!  
> Enjoy my lovelies!  
> -ICTOAN

\---

They hadn’t expected running away from their oppressive wardens, avoiding being poofed as they scurried around a chaotic battlefield, finding the unknown leaders of the rebel forces and convincing them that they should be allowed to join their cause, would be so difficult.

Though, when it was put it like that, maybe they should have.

Citrine squealed and dodged behind a rock to avoid a nearby explosion; Homeworld was really pulling out all the stops for this battle, ships bombarding the desolate, brown field – one which had been green and lush only a few hours earlier – from the cover of murky rainclouds, throngs of quartz soldiers pounding the loose soil into mud as they charged into combat and, of course, there was also they themself.

A useless experiment that had been thrown into a war they knew nothing about, because at least that way Homeworld would get _something_ out of their existence.

The sudden change to everything they’d ever known was scary, exciting, liberating, but they weren’t given any chance to see and experience this strange new world, like they had wanted. No, they were expected to follow orders and use their – unique, but limited – battle skills to help put down the rebels, or die trying.

Knowing the Gems that had created and, for all intents and purposes, raised them, they were counting on the latter.

However, Citrine had other ideas, namely deserting their cruel, tyrannical leaders and joining the crude rebellion ‘army’, made up of everything from pampered aristocrats to isolated scientists to common grunt soldiers, all tired of the Authority’s way of doing things – apparently there was even a _Pearl_ fighting for them!

Unfortunately, they hadn’t thought to make a plan for how to find and approach the rebel leaders; they’d just taken the first opportunity given to them to sneak away from their controlling masters and were now wandering around an active battlefield, hoping that they’d just happen upon whoever they were looking for. It hadn’t been going well so far, they’d never been in a real battle before and all the noise and light and anarchy was dizzying, they were more than a little lost and they’d found themself dodging away from attacks from both sides, the glaring yellow diamond on their chest apparently not enough to deter the more eager Homeworld soldiers.

They leaned their head back against the rock they were currently taking shelter behind, trying to figure out some kind of plan…

Blue eyes suddenly widened in terror, the grey clouds directly above them were glowing with ghostly, green lights, the same lights they’d seen before, signalling an incoming missile. The blond scrambled to their feet and looked around wildly, they needed to find cover, they needed-

“CHAAAA!”

Citrine’s head instinctively snapped around to follow the noise and they just managed to catch sight of a flash of pink figure launching off of the rock behind them, then going up, up, up into the sky, converging on the distant, green flare that had just burst through the clouds and… punching it, a glittering explosion lighting the air for a brief moment, before fading away into little more than a black cloud.

They watched in awe-struck fear as a pink-haired Gem dropped heavily back to Earth, somehow managing to land in a graceful crouch – not even the mud that splattered up onto her form from the impact managed to ruin the effect – and take a few moments to gather her wits.

She looked more than a little beat-up; her hair was messy and stuck to her face with mud, blood and sweat, her clothes were torn in some places and, whatever colour they were originally, they were now the same dull brown as everyone else’s and her breathing was ragged and heavy, but she was undoubtedly the most beautiful sight Citrine had ever seen.

By the time she turned her face up to stare at them – her eyes were wild and a shade of green so bright that they seemed to glow – they had finally found their own breath and were about to ask if she was ok, when movement caught their eye.

The blond’s head jerked up to see a hulking quartz wearing a pink diamond rushing towards the short, but solid figure, who was still staring at them.

They didn’t wait for her to move, Citrine charged at the Homeworld soldier, already creating two holographic clones and reeling their fist back for a solid triple punch to their chest. Caught off-guard by the unexpected attack from a supposed ally, the look of shock and… hurt, on the giant Amethyst’s face before they disappeared in a puff of white smoke, was harder to take than they’d ever expected.

“Hey, you’re not with Homeworld?” a soft voice asked, the blond turned around to see the pink Gem walking over to them.

“Uh, no, not really. I kinda wanted to join your side, but I dunno who to ask or what to do…”

She smiled gently at them – leaning down briefly to form a bubble around the poofed soldier – before casually tapping it out of existence. “I can help you with that, what’s your name?”

The blond stared at her for a long moment, waiting for the sudden attack, but nothing came; she just kept smiling, her eyes occasionally darting around to scan the area for potential threats. “I’m Citrine, who’re you?”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Rhodochrosite,” she said, her grin quickly died as she lunged forwards, knocking them onto their back with a painful thud.

Citrine was about to attack back on instinct, but the whirling blade that spun over their heads quickly shut them up. They watched it embed itself deep into the hard rock, shuddering with the force of it; tilting their head back, their blue eyes widened at the battalion of quartzes charging towards them.

Rhodochrosite jumped to her feet, easily pulling the blond up with her and pulled some pink knuckledusters out of her gem. “Hey, so how good are you with those clones of yours?” she asked.

They chuckled and brought three into being, “Probably about as good as you are with your fists.”

Her responding grin was lethal. “Then this won’t last very long, try to keep up if you want me to give my leaders a good report!”

Citrine watched her leap into the fray, sending a Jasper three times her size flying off into the distance. There was absolutely no doubt about it, they thought, she was the most amazing Gem they’d ever seen.

\---


	2. Labradorite and Pietersite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So given the revelation in the last chap (12) of atfc… now seemed an appropriate time to show how kakashi (labradorite) and iruka (pietersite) met in the gem au, with a bonus appearance from gai (emerald) bc how could I not! Unfortunately I don’t think they’ll be appearing in the series proper, but it was fun to squeeze them in here  
> (this takes place waaay before gems first arrived on earth, just as a reference point, don’t look down on these guys too much for their loyalty to homeworld, they didn’t know there was another way at the time)  
> Enoy!  
> -ICTOAN

\---

“-so, in conclusion, the colonisation of planet TrES-2b is proceeding perfectly on schedule and we look forwards to reporting our complete success in fifty years’ time, your clarity!” Emerald’s head was bowed so low that they could give the gem standing behind them a pointed frown between their legs.

Labradorite sighed and stood up a little straighter, checking that their salute was still as crisp as was usually expected from the higher-ups – why they had to hold the position throughout the _entire_ meeting was beyond them.

It didn’t help that Emerald had a tendency towards verbose embellishment.

And, judging by her bored expression, Chalcedony didn’t appreciate those tendencies either. “Very good, make sure your replacement is prepared to take over, you’ll be given your next assignment soon. That is all.”

With that said, she waved them off, not even deigning to spare them a glance as they backed out of her office, salutes still raised.

The second the door slammed shut, Labradorite was shaking out their arms and groaning out all their pent-up frustration. “Next time, can we _please_ keep the report to a simple ‘things are going as planned’? One day she’s going to throw you out an airlock,” they said, starting to walk away from the office, their partner right beside them.

“But, it’s important to show our pride in our work! How else will she know our joy at overcoming the arduous challenges presented and overco-”

“Probably by reading the eighty-page report you also send her,” they butt in; better to cut them off before they hit terminal velocity grand, youthful, speeching, or else they’d never shut up. Even then there was no guarantee they wouldn’t barrel on through any interruptions, utterly undeterred in their mission to declare their passions with the most obnoxious sincerity.

Actually, it’d probably be best to get moving too, Emerald was already sucking in a deep breath, they didn’t want to be around when they let it out.

They’d managed to get halfway down the hall before the booming voice cried out behind them, “Labradorite! Do you not find your work so joyous you must shout it out? This is unacceptable! Let me show you how to release your pent-up feelings, we can shout together! Labradorite! Where are you going? Labradorite!”

By now they were racing through the maze of hallways, dodging around passing gems – and ignoring the glares and strange looks they glimpsed as they passed – taking shortcuts through the common rooms, vaulting over desks and leaping up to the higher levels, all the while listening out for the tell-tale thundering laugh hot on their heels. Emerald was _fast_ , far faster than they were, so outrunning them wouldn’t be an option, but if they could turn them around somehow, lose them in the labyrinth of the ship, then perhaps they could get away unscathed.

“I will catch you my rival!” The bellow echoed down the hall, bouncing off the metal walls as they skidded around another corner to see-

_Damn_ , a dead end.

Apparently in their rush to get away, they’d not been focusing on where they were running _to_ , ahead of them was a large window looking out on the depths of space. There were doors to either side of the corridor, but the lights glinting above them indicated that they were all locked. Labradorite vainly rushed to the end of the hall anyway, spurred on by the sound of Emerald closing in, they had maybe a minute before they were found and when that happened they would no doubt be in for the sermon of a lifetime, one filled with far too many flowery declarations of youth and passion and duty.

The laughter was rapidly approaching; they wouldn’t have long to make a plan.

Was it too late to just jump through the window? Surely an eternity drifting through the cold, empty void would be the better option, actually now that they thought about it that sounded quite appeal-

There was a hiss behind them, Labradorite didn’t waste a second, already darting through the now open door, slapping a hand to the control pad to lock it behind them.

“Exc-” They swiftly slapped a hand over the confused looking gem’s mouth, only sparing them the shortest glance as they held a single finger to their own lips, before leaning against the door, just as the sound of footsteps screeched to a halt outside.

A long, dreadful pause stretched on, Labradorite slightly distracted by the warm skin under their hand, even while keeping their eyes closed to better focus on the sounds of their friend.

There was a long hmmm, as Emerald paced the small length of corridor just outside.

“I see! You’ve managed to pull a fast one on me! Well done rival, but I will track you down, no matter where you are hiding!” Their voice was already fading fast as they ran back the way they’d come, still keeping up their commentary. Well, that was a close one, now they would just have to apologise to whoever they’d barged in on and...

Staring them down was a familiar looking gem, not one they’d ever spoken to, but one who’d always caught their attention nonetheless; they were often found sitting in on colony assignments and Labradorite definitely remembered seeing them at the various aristocratic gatherings they’d been obligated to attend as the court’s highest performing planetary scout. They might not know much about them, but they knew enough to know that it was _very_ bad to be caught larking about with their oldest friend by this gem.

“M-my cl-”

“So, care to explain what that was?” they said, finally released from Labradorite’s grip and taking a step back, arms crossed and brows furrowed.

Up close, you could see the bands of blue crossing their face and how their dark eyes glittered with expression – not something common in the aristocracy. Under normal circumstances they wouldn’t have even been given a chance to explain, hopefully they could talk themself out of this.

The white-haired gem coughed and glanced around the room – anything so they wouldn’t have to look at that beautiful face. “Ah, well, you see, it’s a… training exercise. To… test tracking skills?”

They looked utterly unimpressed, but at least they weren’t glaring anymore.

“ _Really_.”

“Uh… no, not really,” they said reluctantly, they’d never been a particularly good liar, “it’s just a… game, of sorts, between us, I understand that we should not be partaking in such immaturity, especially on-board a diplomatic ship, I apologise for our behaviour, but please keep punishment to myself, I started the chase on this occasion.”

Labradorite couldn’t see what expression they were making, too busy bowing at a perfect right angle, eyes fixed firmly on the other gem’s feet, one of which was tapping quite fast.

The silence went on for an unbearably long time – long enough that their back was starting to throb – but eventually there was a drawn-out sigh and a none-too-gentle tap on their head. “Oh stop that, look I won’t be punishing anyone, since you’ve done nothing more harmful than be a distraction.”

They blinked at the floor and slowly righted themself, staring blankly at the rather lovely gem before them. “Are… you sure?”

“You _want_ to be punished?” they asked, giving them an amused, but mildly disapproving smile.

“N-no, ah… thank you? For letting us off the hook I mean.” Labradorite couldn’t believe their luck, this gem certainly wasn’t like any other high-class gem they’d ever met. “I promise we’ll stop playing these games from now on. Your clarity.”

Oh. That smile really was something else, wasn’t it?

“As long as you don’t get caught again, I don’t think a little fun is such a bad thing. Oh, and please, I prefer Pietersite.”

\---

**Author's Note:**

> This story is part of [LLF Comment Project](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. This author invites and appreciates feedback, including:
> 
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